Process of effecting exothermic gas reactions.



G. ESGHELLMANN & A, HARMUTH. rnocnss 0F BFFEGTING BXOTHERMIG GAS REACTIONS.

APPLICATION TILED 51113118, 1906.

Patented Aug. 20, 1912.

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it known, that we, esom'usemm MANN, a'subject'of the King'ot Great Brih ainand. ALBERT HnRMu'rit, a subject of-the' Emperor of Germany, both residing at Stu Petersburg, Russian Empire,v hays invented; certain new *and useful Improvements: in Processes of Efiecting. Exothermic'tlas Be: actions, of whichv the following i's-aspecification. 4 Y

' efiecting certaineiiotherniic gas ream by;- the. use of a; heated. catal tic agent, end especially; in sul ur trioxid suriur and air,

from a mixture that the catalytic agentbe it is important" maintained betweencertainlmown.tem-

pera'ture limits. vamious'methods, ofirecovering the surplus reactiomheat' from; the

catalytic agent have been proposedv and adopted, generally dependent on the'trans- 1 fer o-ftheheat to the incoming. gas mixture,

chamber, but in both cases iigdirect-ly.

olthe qgm broad thinl'ayer transverse to the patheteither'through the walls. on. the reaction chamber, or after having left the reaction Aceordingvt 'thepresent process, the reacting usedto and th-I'Olfih one ytic ugent, arrang in a f the reaction-heat may. radiatejdirectly into the advancing s ss reem, '$h e.;.- v .1d c milde oyerheatingg oi gthei contact: agent, and. the

zproduc'tsofrea'ction are then .,a second body'lor bodies 11 tion heat is retained and utilized to cause the assed through I p the catalytic agent, preierably arr-tinged longitudinally the path of the, gasescwher'ein the mac reactiodto proceed substentially to a finish.

- The process may be out by apparatus of various forms. "Constmctmns whi ch have been found effective are shown in the accolnpanying drawing, 1Iewhichf 1 1s a vertical central section of a reaction vessel and gas preheater; and Fig. 2 ISBJI amalsectlon of a modified reaction vessel-v ,The a paratusshown in 1 co p reaction chambers'hl upchamber has an inlet 3"beneath which is a-horizontal perforated plate t, to ditc i ute tbe'incoming gases into a, wide stream, fiIL 131g e hamber; The catalytic; t

forlexample platinized abestos -a broad relatively thin laymenon a -per- 1 formted cast-iron plate 6, supported by the Bet e 8,-. into which,- in iogration, the heat de-- fvele ed within the;v yer of catalytic ma-' gteri is fir'eely' radiated The bulb ofi a. thermometer 9 is arranged within the chain.-

prejects externally. The lower chums. ber 2 is closed at its upper and'lower ends which are secured the ends oi a number. of

fterialzlii. The space 1 1 around and between gthe tubes zmd-incl-osed by the outer wall. oi ithe chamber 2 is. filled with air of gas, serving as a'. heat insulation. The upper ends of the tubes 12 are in open communication with the upper chamber 1' and-the {pipe has two branches, the first,- 17, leading to the preheater and the second, 18, being controlled by a valve 19 andopenin-g into an outlet Qflflwhich communicates with suit- -abl'e apparatus tor absorbing the sulfur trioXid' The reheater comprises a vertical i-cylindrical wa outlet 23 for the mixture oi sulfur dioxid 1 and air.

tubes are. inclbsed by a cover 27, forming a discs from that of Fig. 1 in that the catallytzicmaterial in the lower chamber 2' 1s artmi use? by horizontal tube-sheets 10, 11; within;

vertical tubes 12 filled with catalytic mar- 21- having an inlet 22, and

-ch amher intowhich the products of re-;

jfl'anged lpweriedge'of a rin 'Z at its upper edge to'the-wall 0- the the gas distributer t" and the catalytic mathriali' isl a large empty space iher 1 in the catalytic material 5, and; 6

llo'wer ends of these tubes open into a re ceiver 15 having an outlet-pipe 16. This Secured to the upper and lower "end of the wall 21 are. tube-sheets fil, 25 in j TWhlClL' are secured the ends of the narrow "vertical tubes 26. The upper ends of these 30 having a- -:3

chambers through. the central pipe 28. and

The reaction-vessel. illustrated in Fig; 2 I

heater and reaction chambers are brought,

ranged in a single body, of considerable width, filling the chamber and supported by perforated plates 32.

The walls of the upper and lower reaction chambers, in both constructions, are jacketed with a heat-insulating material 33. In employing the described apparatus for the production of sulfur trioxid, the preto the working temperature by passing a stream of hot air or products of combustion through themnntil the thermometer 9 and the upper chamber 1 indicates a temperature of about 450 C. The proper mixture of sulfur dioxid and air is then supplied, entering the preheat-er through the opening 22, leaving it through the opening 23 an enterin the upper reaction-chamber at its top. he ases are distributed into a wide stream by t e perforated plate 4, flow downward through the space 8 and enter the hot layer 5 of catalytic material, wherein from to per cent.of the surfur dioxid is oxidized to sulfur trioxid. The heat evolved by this reaction radiates upward from the surface of the broad thin layer of catalytic material into the stream of gases in thevspace 8, advancing in lines substantially normal to the surface of the layer, the desired transfer of heat being thus directly, continuously and uniformly effected. The products of reaction pass from the chamber 1 into and through the contact material in the lower reaction chamber 2 or 2, wherein the greater art of the remaining sulfur dioxid is oxidized, the percentage of sulfur dioxid converted into sulfur trioxid and dischargedt-hrough the outlet 16 being from 97 to 99. The reaction-heat is retained in the lower chamber, in the apparatus of Fig. 1 both by the dead air space around the tubes 12 and bythe external jacket 20, thus maint-aining'the temperature necessary for carrying the reaction substantiall-y to a finish. The valves 19, 31 are now set'to shunt a portion of the products through the preheater, the percent thus di-' verted,bein dependent on the amount of sulfur dioxid in the incoming gases, the speed of these gases and the nature, amount and thickness of the layer of contact material in the upper chamber. The valves 19,

31 may be adjusted as required to suit varycontaining reacting gases throug the flow of gases therethrough, enabling blowing engines of half the usual power to be employed. A given output of sulfur trioxid may be produced in apparatus of relatively small size and low cost. The regulation is simple, the apparatus havingbut one inlet and outlet and one thermometer. The catalytic material is easily introduced and is quickly preheated. The support for this material may be of cast-iron, which is cheap, inert and durable.

, It will be observed that the cross section of the apparatus is greater at the catalytic layer through whic the gases pass first, than at the second catalytic layer. In consequence of this the gases will'travel at different velocities through the two bodies of the catalytic agent, the speed being rela-' carry away the mixture heated by dilution and at big er velocity, in contact I with another body of catalytic agent.

2. The process of producing sulfur trioxid, which consists in passing a gaseous stream containing sulfur dioxid and oxygen in contact with a body of catalytic agent, and then, without dilution and at higher velocity, in contact with another body of catalytic agent.

3. The process of effecting exothermic gas reactions, which consists in passing a stream containing reacting gases in contact with a body of catalytic agent, and then, without cooling, dilution, or removal of. the reactionproducts, in contact with another body of catalytic agent.

4. The process of producing sulfur trioxid, which consists in passing a gaseous stream containing sulfur dioxid and oxygen in contact witha bod of catalytic agent, and then, without coo ing, dilution, or removal of the reaction-products, in contact with another body of catalytic agent.

5. The process of effecting exothermic gas reactions, which consists in passin a stream a wide thin layer of catalytic agent, and then through a narrower thicker body of catalytic agent.

III

G. The process of producing sulfur triexid, which consists in passing a gaseous stream containing sulfur dioxid and oxygen through a wide thin layer-of catalytic agent,

and then through a narrower thicker body 'of catalytic agent.-

7. The process of effecting exothermic gas reactions,which consists iii-passing a stream containing reacting gases through a wide thin layer of catalytic agent, and then reducing the width of said stream and passing mediate cooling or ren1oval of the reaction:

products, and passing it through a thicker body of catalytic agent.

10. The process ofproducing sulfur trioxid, which consists in passing a gaseous stream containing sulfur dioxid and oxygen through a wide thin layerof catalytic agent, then reducingthe width of said gas stream, without intermediate cooling or removal of the reaction-products, and passing it through a thicker body of catalytic agent. i

11. The process of effectingexothermic gas reactions which consists in passing a stream containing reacting gases through a wide thin layer of catalytic agent, and then, without cooling, througha narrower thicker body of catalytic agent. v

12. The process of producing sulfur trioxid, which consists in passing a stream containing sulfur dioxid and'oxygen through a wide thin layer of catalytic agent, and then, without cooling, through a narrower thicker body of catalytic agent. i

13. The process of effecting exothermic gas reactions, which consists in preheating tone or more of the reacting gases, passing a st-reani containing the reacting gases in c011 tact with a wide thin layer of catalytic agent and thereby further heating the incoming gases by reaction-heat radiated from said layer directly into said stream, a.nd, w1thout= cooling, and at higher velocity, substantially completing the reaction by passing the 1mtial reac't-ion-products in contact with another body of catalytic agent.

14. The process of producing sulfur trioxid, which consists in preheating a stream of gases containing sulfur dloxid and oxygen, passing the gaseous stream in contact gas reactions, which consists in preheating one or more of the reacting gases, passing a stream containing the reacting gases in contact with a wide thin layer of catalytic agent and thereby further heating the incoming gases by reaction-heat radiated from said layer directly into said stream, and substantially completing the reaction by passi mg the initial lCilCtlOll-Pl'OdIltfts, without dilution and at higher velocity, in contact with an other body of catalytic agent.

1(3. The process of producing sulfur trioxid, whiclr consists in preheating a stream of gases containing sulfur dioxid and oxygen, pa ing the gaseous stream in contact with a wide thin layer of catalytic agent and thereby further heating the incoming gases by reaction-heat radiated from said layer directly into said stream and substantially completing the reaction by passing the initial reaction-products, withoutdilution and at higher velocity, in contact with another body of-catalytic agent. I

In testimony whereof, we ailix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

GEOR-G ESOl-IELLM AN N. ALBERT l-IAll-MUTII.

\Vitness'es:

AL. A. LoVIAoUmE, Auo MIeHIs. 

